Why Asians are going crazy over ‘Crazy Rich Asians’

THE premiere of highly anticipated romantic dramedy Crazy Rich Asians finally hit the red carpet this week in a glitzy celebration of the first Hollywood-produced movie to feature an all-Asian cast in a quarter century.

Directed by Jon M. Chu and scheduled for release in the US on Aug 15, the movie adaptation of Kevin Kwan’s best-selling novel of the same name has already achieved cult-like status for its dazzling depiction of the lives of Singapore’s uber-rich.

Set against the backdrop of ever-so-affluent Singapore, the plot revolves around American-born Chinese economics professor Rachel Chu, played by Constance Wu, who meets her boyfriend’s wealthy and tradition-bound family of Chinese descent.

Rachel discovers his family are real estate moguls and struggles to win their approval – particularly of his mother, played by Malaysia-born Michelle Yeoh, whose previous acting stints include roles in “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” and “James Bond 007 – Tomorrow Never Dies”.

Other cast members include new faces include like New York rapper Awkwafina and British-Malaysian actor Henry Golding (Rachel’s beau in the movie), Gemma Chan, and Ken Jeong.

I was star-struck meeting Michelle Yeoh! All I wanted to do was chat with her, but we had to pose instead. Such an odd profession!

BTW, she was INCREDIBLE in #crazyrichasians!! Love her! Hope to work with her one day! https://t.co/PebfCbMO6g

— Ming-Na Wen (@MingNa) August 8, 2018

So what’s all the hype about?

The film has been the subject of wide fascination and debate ever since Jon announced that production would begin in April 2017 in........